In her Olympic debut, Sha’Carri Richardson had to settle for the silver medal in the women’s 100-meter race.
Instead, it was Saint Lucia’s Julien Alfred who earned gold, at 10.72 seconds – USA’s Melissa Jefferson received the bronze.
It’s the first time since 1996 in which two Americans medaled in the event.
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Sha’carri Richardson of Team United States celebrates during the Women’s 100m Round 1 on day seven of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Stade de France on August 02, 2024 in Paris, France. (Hannah Peters/Getty Images)
The 24-year-old was all set to compete in Tokyo three years ago, but tested positive for cannabis shortly afterward. She accepted a one-month suspension by the United States Anti-Doping Agency, making her ineligible for the 100-meter. She was also not selected for the 4×100 relay team, forcing her Olympic debut to be delayed until this year.
Richardson won the event at the world championships in Budapest last year with a career-best 10.65, automatically putting herself in the gold medal discussion in Paris – but she fell 15-hundredeths of a second short.
Sha’carri Richardson of Team USA, centre, and Julien Alfred of Team Saint Lucia, right, after the women’s 100m semifinals at the Stade de France during the 2024 Paris Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France. (Sam Barnes/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
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The Olympics site says Richardson’s reaction time was 0.221 seconds, the slowest of the eight runners in the final, while Alfred’s was 0.144. Ultimately, simple math says it didn’t quite matter, but it does show a key reason why Richardson had to fight from behind early on.
It’s the first time since 2004 in which the gold was not won by a Jamaican.
The United States has been starving for a winner in the 100-meter – Marion Jones is the last American woman to do it back in 2000, but she was stripped of that medal due to taking performance-enhancing drugs. Gail Devers won gold in 1996 in a photo finish.
In fact, no American has won an Olympic 100-meter race since Justin Gatlin in 2004.
Sha’carri Richardson of Team USA, centre, and Julien Alfred of Team Saint Lucia, right, after the women’s 100m semifinals at the Stade de France during the 2024 Paris Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France. (Sam Barnes/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
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Richardson did not qualify for the 200 meters, but she will, in all likelihood, be running the 4×100 meter relay to try to redeem herself – the United States fell in that event in Tokyo to Jamaica after winning gold in 2016.
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